Accessible textbooks are alternative electronic forms of books which can be made into many different types of books to meet each individual learners needs (ex. braille, books on tape, enlarged).
It takes less time to create new text for students from this file. It can also be accessed in a variety of ways and can be used with the assistive technology that the student already has in place. These new forms of books give learners more access to the general education curriculum.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Flexible Technology
The most important change to make in a traditional classroom would be to give students access to computers during the writing process. Students can use Word to draft, revise, and finalize all of their documents. This will also cut down on a ton of time which students currently use writing and rewriting the same story.
Some of the barriers with implementing flexible technology that I see are extra planning and unreliable technology. As we found out through creating our webquest, it takes a ton of time to create an assignment like this. I don't know where I would find time in my day to create another assignment like this to go along with the material in my class. Also, we experienced 'technical difficulties' in our lab which is a step up from most computer labs in schools. It's this unknown factor that can be very hard to deal with, especially in a room full of 30 students.
Some of the barriers with implementing flexible technology that I see are extra planning and unreliable technology. As we found out through creating our webquest, it takes a ton of time to create an assignment like this. I don't know where I would find time in my day to create another assignment like this to go along with the material in my class. Also, we experienced 'technical difficulties' in our lab which is a step up from most computer labs in schools. It's this unknown factor that can be very hard to deal with, especially in a room full of 30 students.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Webquest
Webquests are a form of Universal Design. Webquests are a great way to integrate technology into an already busy and over loaded curriculum. They are a great way to cover many different aspects of a topic and have students find appropriate information (maybe even teach the class). Students will retain a lot more information as they have a larger hand in the research and delivery of instruction.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Blogs to follow
The following blogs are great for teachers, especially special education teachers.
EdTech Solutions - Teaching every student:
This blog talks specifically about working with students with disabilities in the classroom with using technology. This is great for helping students with disabilities participate in general education classrooms with proper modifications and accommodations.
Successful Teaching:
This is a great blog for all teachers to share ideas and thought involving education and their practices.
Behavior Modification:
This blog provides ideas for behavior management. It can be used with whole classes and for setting up behavior plans for specific students.
EdTech Solutions - Teaching every student:
This blog talks specifically about working with students with disabilities in the classroom with using technology. This is great for helping students with disabilities participate in general education classrooms with proper modifications and accommodations.
Successful Teaching:
This is a great blog for all teachers to share ideas and thought involving education and their practices.
Behavior Modification:
This blog provides ideas for behavior management. It can be used with whole classes and for setting up behavior plans for specific students.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Digital Kids. Analog Schools.
"One of our problems has been that we have tried to shape the technology around outdated notions of what schooling is about, rather than reshaping our notions to reflect new world conditions. . . . In a rapidly changing world, it becomes much less valuable to be able to memorize the answer, and much more valuable to be able to find and even invent the answers. . . . We can’t keep up with making the technology the curriculum. All we can do is prepare our students to teach themselves. It’s the only way to keep up."
http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/2005/12/16/so-whats-different-some-answers/
Technology, whether we like it or not, is going to be a key component is our students lives. In school, they need to be able to learn how to use technology in appropriate ways to help them. With so much information at their finger tips, it is pointless to be able to memorize information; it is more important for them to be able to find the information that they want and be able to add to the information so they can in turn teach others.
We desperately need . . . we may not survive without . . . a generation of young people who are imaginative, inventive, fearless learners, and compassionate leaders. Yet, what can we say, as educators, about the students we are producing? We can prove that they can read, do basic math on paper, and they are able to sit for hours filling in bubble sheets.
No generation in history has ever been so thoroughly prepared for the industrial age.
http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/2006/02/16/happy-birthday-jude/
In our schools, students are being prepared for jobs such as factory workers, customer services, and other jobs that require following directions. We are not preparing our students to be innovators and create new opportunities for themselves. Other countries are doing just that, preparing their students for the future, and therefore taking over the world economy and power.
http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/2005/12/16/so-whats-different-some-answers/
Technology, whether we like it or not, is going to be a key component is our students lives. In school, they need to be able to learn how to use technology in appropriate ways to help them. With so much information at their finger tips, it is pointless to be able to memorize information; it is more important for them to be able to find the information that they want and be able to add to the information so they can in turn teach others.
We desperately need . . . we may not survive without . . . a generation of young people who are imaginative, inventive, fearless learners, and compassionate leaders. Yet, what can we say, as educators, about the students we are producing? We can prove that they can read, do basic math on paper, and they are able to sit for hours filling in bubble sheets.
No generation in history has ever been so thoroughly prepared for the industrial age.
http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/2006/02/16/happy-birthday-jude/
In our schools, students are being prepared for jobs such as factory workers, customer services, and other jobs that require following directions. We are not preparing our students to be innovators and create new opportunities for themselves. Other countries are doing just that, preparing their students for the future, and therefore taking over the world economy and power.
Monday, June 13, 2011
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